Sex and the Young
Whilst deciding what to write about today, I came across an article about how girls “go along with sex acts”. Basically, the article implies that boys and girls seem to have a lack of sexual understanding and as the article puts it, they do not see the “gravitas of sex”. The article is based on a 24 year old secondary school teacher’s conversation with some students.
This information does not surprise me, indeed, I have talked at length about this in some of my presentations as well as with my clients. The proliferation of pornography, especially on line pornography coupled with a much more highly sexualised focus on the youth lead to these kinds of difficulties. Indeed, it is right and proper that the youth be taught about sexually transmitted diseases and contraception, however these same youth seem illiterate about subjects like commitment and love.
Porn gives a certain impression about sex and yes in some respects this can be very positive in that it allows people to explore their desires and normalises sex to a large extent. However, without context, children see porn as the norm and what they need to live up to in order to be “normal”. Parents and educators must be the first line of defence in this issue or, as I see in my practice, a growth of sexual dysfunction, body issues and general lack of sex esteem and awareness will cause difficulties in adult life.
